Baitcast Reel Problems

[Blake - ColoradoAngling]

Hi I have been have some problems with my reel

I have a magnetic braking system bait cast fell and when I'm retrieving a lure I'm reel just fine and then all of a sudden it gets hard to turn but once i turn it 1/5 of a rotation It starts to reel fine. It will do this approximately every 5 times I completely turn the handle.

If you have any explanations or resolutions plZ tell me I need help

By the way the reel is a abu Garcia hank Parker design. Baitcast reel

[kingkong85]

What lure were you reeling in? 1 thing I think it could be is the lure getting caught through weeds, grass or whatever is down in the water.

Have you tried reeling without any lure to see if it's the reel or not?

[Darren.]

Welcome to the forums, Blake.

 

Plenty of reel experts here, bound to give you some advice.

[Blake - ColoradoAngling]

Welcome to the forums, Blake.

Plenty of reel experts here, bound to give you some advice.

It's not getting stuck in grass or anything because when it got hard to turn the handle I would put slack it my line and reel and it would still be hard to turn then it would be normal to turn after I turned it a little bit

[aavery2]

Sounds like a bad gear or a levelwind issue to me

[Blake - ColoradoAngling]

Sounds like a bad gear to me

I would i go about fixing that and would it be better to just get a new reel that's better cuz that reel was only 50

[mjseverson24]

I have had this problem with an inexpensive pflueger reel before, what happened to me was the main drive gear was just misaligned with the spool gear, and every couple of cranks the reel would bind then slip back into place. I fixed this by taking the reel apart cleaning it oiling it making sure everything was in position then put it back together. from the sounds of it you are having a similar issue. 

 

Mitch

[aavery2]

I would i go about fixing that and would it be better to just get a new reel that's better cuz that reel was only 50

Need to determine what it is first.  

[Blake - ColoradoAngling]

I have had this problem with an inexpensive pflueger reel before, what happened to me was the main drive gear was just misaligned with the spool gear, and every couple of cranks the reel would bind then slip back into place. I fixed this by taking the reel apart cleaning it oiling it making sure everything was in position then put it back together. from the sounds of it you are having a similar issue.

Mitch

[Blake - ColoradoAngling]

I have had this problem with an inexpensive pflueger reel before, what happened to me was the main drive gear was just misaligned with the spool gear, and every couple of cranks the reel would bind then slip back into place. I fixed this by taking the reel apart cleaning it oiling it making sure everything was in position then put it back together. from the sounds of it you are having a similar issue.

Mitch

I might just get a curado after Christmas chase I do t want to deal with taking it apart and accidently breaking it or messing it up even more

[aavery2]

Take the pawl cap off and remove and inspect the pawl, while the pawl is out crank the reel and see if you still have the same problem. If not you have a bad pawl or levelwind , if the problem is still there I would suspect a gear problem.

[bassh8er]

I don't know much about reels but would advise to quit reeling until you fix the problem. If you continue to have this issue it's not going to fix itself and you risk even further damage to the reel.

[Blake - ColoradoAngling]

Take the pawl cap off and remove and inspect the pawl, while the pawl is out crank the reel and see if you still have the same problem. If not you have a bad pawl or levelwind , if the problem is still there I would suspect a gear problem.

What is a paw cap

[The Rooster]

The pawl cap is on the level wind on the front of the reel. It's a small cap that just unscrews off and has a pawl inside it, and possibly a shim or two that will look like very small washers (used for spacers when needed, not all reels have those).

Since the binding is not every single turn of the handle, but every 4 or 5, I'd say it's in the level wind also. That's about how many cranks it takes for the level wind to cross from one side to the other and it could be binding up when trying to reverse directions again, then frees up once it gets forced through by you continuing to crank it. There is a small part called a level wind pawl that must rotate once it reaches the end of the worm shaft in order to go back the other way. If there is a bur on the pawl or worm shaft then this can be why it's binding. This could simply be from having these parts running dry on oil, or dirt stuck in them.

I know this though, that binding and then forcing it to crank through can, and probably already has, caused damage to those parts. Replacement of them may be needed now. You won't know until some tests are done, as suggested above, or the reel is disassembled to inspect it. The worm shaft is the part on the front of the reel that looks like this. (XXXXX) The pawl rides in the grooves of it, and then swivels slightly to realign with the reverse set of grooves once it reaches the side. I'm pretty sure this is the cause. If it were in the gears I would think you'd feel it on every crank, not just every 4 or 5.

If this is the old red colored, round Ambassadeur Hank Parker reel you may be able to remove the pawl cap fairly easily, but if it's another low profile version I'm not familiar with then removing it might be a chore. Most low profile reels need to have the nose piece of the body removed to reach the pawl cap. Many other parts will need to come off before the nose piece is even accessible on those reels. The round reels usually have the pawl cap exposed since they don't have nose pieces to cover them up.

[Preytorien]

I've had similar experiences with a spinning reel, and not a cheap one. It was a Shimano (can't remember the model), but it cost me a bit over $100.

 

After disassembling it, cleaning it, reassembling it, the problem still persisted.

 

I got the schematic diagram from Shimano and realized that there were two arrows, one on the handle gear, and one on the main drive that had to be aligned. If they weren't it would wind unevenly like yours sounds to be doing.

 

I aligned them, gave the reel another quick cleaning, and it's not been problematic since.

 

You might download the schematic, take as much of the reel apart as you're comfortable doing, and making sure all the parts are in their proper places.

 

Just a thought.....

[new2BC4bass]

DVT is a sponsor.  Send it there for a thorough cleaning.  Make sure you let Mike know the problem you are having.  He offers 10% discount to bassresource members.  It will come back better than new.

 

BTW, you should buy the Curado anyway.  (Bait Monkey apprentice.  )

[duckmaster55]

I've seen this happen to a couple of reels, it sounds like a gear could be broken and missing a few teeth.

[Smallmouth Hunter]

I've seen this happen to a couple of reels, it sounds like a gear could be broken and missing a few teeth.

That is definitely not the problem. If the gear was missing teeth than instead of getting rough while turning the handle, the spool would not turn at all and it would probably be less rough since the load is taken of the gear momentarily while not teeth are engaging each other. My guess is it is the worm gear, or the pawl like mentioned above.

[Delaware Valley Tackle]

Most likely If you want ta level wind issue. I recommend replacing the pawl and worm gear as a set if either is bad. In all fairness if this reel was $50 new it would be cheaper to replace than to have repaired. I wouldn't use it the way it is. If you want to attempt a DIY make sure to have a schematic and email me if you get stuck.

[Blake - ColoradoAngling]

The pawl cap is on the level wind on the front of the reel. It's a small cap that just unscrews off and has a pawl inside it, and possibly a shim or two that will look like very small washers (used for spacers when needed, not all reels have those).

Since the binding is not every single turn of the handle, but every 4 or 5, I'd say it's in the level wind also. That's about how many cranks it takes for the level wind to cross from one side to the other and it could be binding up when trying to reverse directions again, then frees up once it gets forced through by you continuing to crank it. There is a small part called a level wind pawl that must rotate once it reaches the end of the worm shaft in order to go back the other way. If there is a bur on the pawl or worm shaft then this can be why it's binding. This could simply be from having these parts running dry on oil, or dirt stuck in them.

I know this though, that binding and then forcing it to crank through can, and probably already has, caused damage to those parts. Replacement of them may be needed now. You won't know until some tests are done, as suggested above, or the reel is disassembled to inspect it. The worm shaft is the part on the front of the reel that looks like this. (XXXXX) The pawl rides in the grooves of it, and then swivels slightly to realign with the reverse set of grooves once it reaches the side. I'm pretty sure this is the cause. If it were in the gears I would think you'd feel it on every crank, not just every 4 or 5.

If this is the old red colored, round Ambassadeur Hank Parker reel you may be able to remove the pawl cap fairly easily, but if it's another low profile version I'm not familiar with then removing it might be a chore. Most low profile reels need to have the nose piece of the body removed to reach the pawl cap. Many other parts will need to come off before the nose piece is even accessible on those reels. The round reels usually have the pawl cap exposed since they don't have nose pieces to cover them up.

Thanks I figured out the problem I took the pawl out of the level wind and I saw that one side was higher than the other

But does anyone know where to get a replacement pawl